Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 23,859 Shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. $MCB

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its ownership in Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. by 3.7%, now holding 6.28% of the bank's shares valued at approximately $37.47 million.
• Metropolitan Bank announced a $50 million stock buyback program as part of its strategy, suggesting the board believes shares are undervalued.
• The bank reported earnings of $1.76 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, while revenues reached $76.27 million, surpassing analyst estimates.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Free Report) by 3.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 669,219 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,859 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 6.28% of Metropolitan Bank worth $37,470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the first quarter worth $84,000. XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in Metropolitan Bank by 62.8% in the first quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 14,111 shares of the company's stock valued at $790,000 after acquiring an additional 5,442 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Metropolitan Bank in the first quarter valued at about $352,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in Metropolitan Bank by 749.4% in the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 316,191 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,704,000 after acquiring an additional 278,966 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Metropolitan Bank in the first quarter valued at about $986,000. 79.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Metropolitan Bank Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of MCB stock traded up $0.08 on Friday, hitting $79.49. 57,642 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 61,817. Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $47.08 and a fifty-two week high of $80.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $828.32 million, a P/E ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a 50-day moving average of $73.15 and a 200 day moving average of $64.38.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 13.68%.The business had revenue of $76.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Metropolitan Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Investors of record on Monday, July 28th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 28th. Metropolitan Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.72%.

Metropolitan Bank announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, July 17th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Metropolitan Bank from $81.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Hovde Group boosted their target price on Metropolitan Bank from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Metropolitan Bank

In related news, Director Robert C. Patent sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.02, for a total transaction of $395,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 98,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,798,088.70. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott Lublin sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.64, for a total value of $393,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,179 shares in the company, valued at $3,631,516.56. The trade was a 9.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 78,077 shares of company stock valued at $5,406,205 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.09% of the company's stock.

About Metropolitan Bank

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.